Why I love the Toastmasters Club?

I have a confession to make. I love the Toastmasters Club! In particular, Miri Toastmasters Club. Why do I say that? Well, when you feel tired and weak, come for a workshop and a group of sincere people will laugh together with you and motivate you. By the end of the workshop, you just feel that the stress is all gone.

Now if I made it sound like it is a laughing club, actually it's only half true. The Toastmasters Club is dedicated to the development of verbal communication skills and leadership skills among its members. It has touched the lives of more than 250,000 people! Personally, I've improved a lot as both a leader and speaker ever since joining this club 2 years ago. Every workshop is a learning laboratory to discover myself more. We learn by doing and that's the best way to learn.

In my 2 years at this club, I've seen people transformed from a timid person into a confident speaker. Talk about the Magic of Public Speaking. If you are interested to drop by to see the workshop and experience the fun and laughter, we meet every 1st and 3rd Thursday of the month at Gymkhana Club, Miri. Our workshop starts at 7.30pm.

Failing Forward

I was having a deep discussion with a close friend last week when the subject of our discussion touched on the topic of fear and failure. My friend asked me a very profound question "What is the worst case scenario that you will see yourself in?" Well, that question hit me like a tonne of bricks. It was one of those questions where I know is there but never really got around to asking, perhaps conveniently bypassing it.

As I was contemplating it, I told him that if I were to fail, I'll make sure that I come up with something else to make up for the gap that my failure would have created. I'd not just return to where I was and say "Boy, I should have just listened to them naysayers." The idea was to make sure that I'd go further and further towards my goal and each failure would be a push towards the success that I'm searching for.

My friend immediately replied "Failing Forward." I thought it sounded cool. So I googled the phrase and it is actually the title of a book written by Leadership guru John C. Maxwell about how to optimize each failure to achieve our success.

At present, I'm about to make a very important decision that may change the course of my life. Am I scared? OF COURSE, I AM! Am I excited? YES, too! (There's something about us humans who like to seek thrills in activities such as bungee jumping and climbing the KLCC Twin Towers with our bare hands to tell ourselves that: Yes! I am alive!) But I'm going for it even though I'm scared. That's what courage is. It is not the absence of fear. Rather it is doing something in spite of fear.

I'll finish with this quote by the Malaysian tycoon, Mr. Robert Kuok. He said as much as "she pai nai chen gong che mu" (translated as failure is the mother of success), he holds firmly that "chen gong nai she pai che mu" (translated as success is the mother of failure). Does it make sense to you?

Paradigm Shift

Yesterday, I had an experience which started off as bad and ended up helping me discover something important. It was not a very big event and one which was pretty mundane you'd say.

As I've blogged earlier, I am still nursing my dislocated left shoulder. I had an appointment with my physiotherapist booked at 2.30pm. At 2.15pm I went to my car only to discover that 1 of the tyres was punctured. My first reaction was "Oh man! Not now!". Normally, I would just roll up my sleeves and change it in a jiffy but not with my injured shoulder. So, I went in search for help and finally found a shop which was willing to send their staff over to help me change the tyre. Problem solved but I missed my appointment.

Anyway, what was the important thing that I discovered? Well, my paradigm shift. Let me explain. Several years ago, I underwent a hernia surgery. (The wound was the exact location as the C-section surgery so I know how that feels like after giving birth LOL!) That Saturday, I was home alone and ready to get to work. So, I turned the ignition key and the car engine just wouldn't start. Yup! A flat battery. Being the gung-ho, Rambo, Lone Ranger - type, I pushed the car out of the house, pushed it down the slope, turned the ignition key and jumped into it the moment the engine was ignited. Well, it took me 2 attempts to get it work. Man, I was so proud of myself.

But thinking back, that was plain stupid. 1) I could ask my neighbours to help, or 2) I could call office and tell them about my problem. What if I burst the wound? That would be worse, right? Well, that was the lone ranger mentality I used to have. And it got me no where.

So, my experience yesterday where I humbled myself and went seeking for help told me that I have learnt the importance to getting help and assistance from others to get things done. That way, we could do much more than we could ever accomplish alone. So, that's my paradigm shift.

Have a Happy Day!

The Magic of Public Speaking

The Miri Toastmasters Club is organizing a public seminar themed "The Magic of Public Speaking". It will be held on 17 October 2009 from 1.30pm - 4.30pm at Pustaka Miri auditorium. The 2 speakers are Luke Bong (yours truly) and Distinguished Toastmaster Mohd Ariff Azahari. Tickets are available now. If you purchase the tickets before 18 September, it will be only RM45 (early bird). Normal price is RM50. For students (secondary schools, colleges and university), it is priced at RM30 only. Special offer for group booking of 10 tickets. This year, all participants will be issued a certificate of participation.

I'll be speaking on the topic "Let Your Body Speak". Most people associate public speaking with the ability to use fantastic or bombastic words. Well, that's only part of public speaking. In reality, words only affect a listener around 7%. The balance are actually body language and tonality. I'll be sharing on how one can use their body effectively when they speak to convince and influence the listeners. This is a topic that will surely interests people who have to do presentations to persuade or influence others.

Mohd Ariff will be sharing on the topic "How Anyone Can Create A Charismatic, Magnetic Voice". We all know how important a good sounding voice is. Let the expert show you how. This is a topic not to be missed. Ariff is the Liutenant Governor of Education and Training of Toastmasters International District 51 (Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei). He is also a Distinguished Toastmaster (DTM). There are only a handful of DTM in Sarawak and he is the first Bumiputra DTM from Sarawak.

Checkout the post on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/search/?q=toast&init=quick#/event.php?eid=122303700957&ref=mf

Hope to see you at the seminar!

Cheers,
Luke

What My Injury Taught Me

Recently, I experienced one of the worst physical pains ever in my life. To cut a long story short, I dislocated my left shoulder in a freak accident in Melaka. The irony of it was it happened when I was having fun at a theme park. Talk about bittersweet. This was the second time I dislocated my left shoulder. The first time was in 1994 during a Wushu free sparring tournament in Kuching, Sarawak. My opponent managed to yank my shoulder out of its socket. The match ended as a TKO.

This round though, I was very thankful I had 3 friends who accompanied me throughout the whole ordeal lasting approximately 3 hours. (Thank God for friends who are caring) At the hospital in Tampin, Negeri Sembilan, I was given 21 days of Sick Leave by the doctor and adviced to get plenty of rest. Well, for good or for bad, throughout this time, I went through some periods of soul searching. First, I was thinking about the path to take for my future. Second, I was rethinking about the whole idea of corporate life.

Well, luckily before I kept on going down the "Oh me, Oh my" tunnel, thank God I met my physiotherapist who asked me why I was still working when I have been given sick leave. My reply was "I had no choice." To which he replied, "You must be an important man for your company lah". I laughed. I never thought of it that way. Perhaps, when people still call on you regarding work when you are on leave or sick leave is a sign that you are important and they can't do without you. (Some will also say poor management on my part, too. Can't please everybody)

Suddenly I felt proud about it but at the same time, it also put me in perspective. What does the company really care about? Me? Or what I'm paid to do? You know, I believe everything that has happened has a reason behind it. And I strongly believe in blessings in disguise. Perhaps this is one of them right now.

God, grant me the wisdom to deal with this situation and give me the vision to know which path I have to take. Amen!

Don't Be Good. Be GREAT!

In the latest issue of Success Magazine, Darren Hardy interviewed "the Hitman" David Foster. David Foster is the producer behind artistes such as Michael Buble, Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, Barbara Streisand, Chicago and scores of other heavyweights in the music industry. Whatever the Hitman touches turn to gold (and sometimes platinuum), literally.

One of the secrets of his success is this "Good is never enough." Wow! That's a pretty high standard to set for oneself, right? But that's also how he could standout from the rest in his chosen industry. I guess at the end of the day, it will become our 'signature' and reputation. Just imagine. Your name is signed as 'GREAT'.

I believe this strongly. One's reputation arrives before him and stays behind after him. If that's the case, I'll not just settle for good. I'll go for GREAT!

I opt to be a ...
GREAT Husband to my wife
GREAT Father to my son
GREAT Friend to those whom I have the honour to befriend
GREAT Speaker and create breakthroughs for myself
GREAT Encourager to those who need a drop of motivation every now and then

Don't just be good. Be GREAT!

Life Made Complicated

This scene is probably quite familiar. At the restaurant or hotel washroom (especially those trendy type), we chance upon someone staring at the sink, studying the tap to try to figure out just how s/he could force some water out of it. Has this ever happened to you before? Sure did to me.

Which made me think: the water tap is so essential to our daily lives and yet we make it so complicated and some even requires a degree in rocket science to operate it! Imagine you go to a cafe to order a cup of coffee.

You: Can I have a cup of coffee, pls?
Barrista: You want Java, Arabica, Bali, Vienese?
You: Give me Vienese, pls.
Barrista: Ok. You want expresso, cuppochino, latte?
You: Give me a latte, pls.
Barrista: Excellent choice. You want full cream milk, skim milk or fat free milk?
You: Fat free milk, pls.
Barrista: Cow or goat?
You: Forget it. Just give me a Kopi-O?
Barrista: With or without sugar?
You: With sugar, pls.
Barrista: White, brown or artificial?
You: ?#@*!!!

Are there somethings which we have made overly complicated in our lives? For example, I must have this, and this, and this, and that, and this before I can be really happy. If we pause for a moment and compare it to the water tap. Do I really need a fancy water tap if all I needed is just access to clean water?

Let's make things simple and be happy always!